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his fervants, and to attend his purpose, and that he may serve himself of all mens parts, powers, priviledges and opportunities; but he himself is exempt from all men so that he is an enemy to God and

men.

DISCOURSE

V.

The fecret B LASTING of MEN.

PSALM Xxxix. II.

When thou with rebukes doft correct man for iniquity, thou makeft his beauty to confume away like a moth; Jurely every man is vanity. Selah.

OTHING is lefs true, nothing more un

NOT

becoming us, limited, finite, and fallible. creatures, than the thought of independency and felf-fufficiency. And indeed, the whole creation of God, in comparison with God himself, is lefs than the duft of the balance; and if you come to compare, will hold no weight. Nothing becomes us more, than to know what we are: nothing befits us better, than that we know our own ftate, and to be fenfible of our own dependence and neceffity, and to make due acknowledgement to God. If a man feriously weigh these words, he will always veil to God, humble himself, submit, and deprecate. So many things there are emphatical in these words, When thou, &c.

Sin, on man's part, is that that makes him much more liable and obnoxious to God, than he is in respect of his creature-ftate when thou with rebukes doft correct man for iniquity thou makeft his beau ty, that that he values himself by, that that is his only thing, his top excellency, to confume away like a moth, without any refiftance, without any stop, infenfibly fo that he that doth contemplate what is faid in the former part of the words, will presently acknowledge, that every man, even in his best estate is vanity, altogether vanity.

Thefe words give an account of two things which are the matter of the greatest wonder.

First, How it comes to pass there are fo many

fo great evils in the world.

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and

Secondly, How fo many perfons come to wither and fall away, and come to nothing in the world. And these two are the greatest matters of wonder and admiration among men.

First, How it comes to pass that there are fo ma→ ny, and fo great evils in the world: and the wonder is this, that God governs the world, and God is known by his goodness: what, thefe evils from the hand of a good God! how can this be? the greatest questi→ ons that have ever been in the world, have been thefe two.

1. Whence evils come? and

2. How it comes to pass they were not fubdued, as foon as they did appear; I believe it would puzzle the head of any one in the world to answer them; if he do not learn an answer from fcripture. Now this place refolves you: you have here God chal

lenging

lenging, controuling and rebuking it. For if you find out the procuring cause, you find out all: nor he that doth the thing, but he that was the cause of the thing being done, doth the mischief.

Secondly, Then how comes it to pass that so many wither in the world, with all advantages, honour, titles, dignity and estate, that they never spent their thoughts about getting; and out-live it all. Whereas you have others born naked into the world; and through the improvement of natures, powers, they rife to eftates and revenues. How comes this to pafs in these words you have an account. When thou with rebukes doft correct a man for iniquity, thou makeft his beauty to confume away like a moth..

These two confiderations are enough to engage your attention every body hath their ears open to hear refolutions of wonders.

In the words you have four things.

I. What is intimated, and that is, that fin is the procuring cause of punishment. When thou with rebukes doft correct man for fin, &c. Sin is the procuring caufe of punishment. It is fin that doth the world all the mischief that is in the world. A fault deferves punishment: the fault going before, doth. naturally draw on with it punishment.

II. Take notice of what is fuppofed, that God, doth regularly and ufually chaftife finners. Goddoth, as a thing becoming him in the government of the world, he doth controul finners, and chastise men for fin. The word is very remarkable, When thou with rebukes, &c. which intimates fomething in fecret not only openly punished in the view of the

world;

world; but finners feel checks' and reproofs from God, which unless they themselves tell, others are not aware of. An internal stroke; for these rekukes are fecret; though they are certainly felt by thofe that are under them, by-standers take no cognizance of them. The torments of a man's own breast are beyond any evil that befalls the body trouble in a man's mind, is beyond the pain of the stone or gout For if a man's mind be whole, he can bear up against bodily infirmity. But a wounded Spirit who can bear? Prov. xviii. 14.*

III. Take notice what is propofed; that these rebukes of God blast men: when thou with rebukes correctest man for fin, thou makeft bis beauty to confume. His beauty, that is, that which is most defirable, that which is most valuable; his health, his wealth, his friends, his internal peace, the parts of his mind for thefe are a man's excellency, and all these are meant by his beauty. And if God blast a man, all these wither away, and come to nothing thou makeft his beauty to confume away like a moth : a moth is always fretting, not apt to be found out, not apt to be refifted, but brings all to confufion. These rebukes of God blast men.

IV. Take notice what is here inferred: furely every man is vanity. And no conclufion doth more plainly follow from any thing premised. For eve ry man is vanity upon a double account.

Ift, Because he is fallible, and so subject to miscarry; elfe he would never be found in the ways of iniquity, and

*Si dii deæque omnes, &c. Tacitus in Tiberio.

2dly, Because

2dly, Because he is so controulable and account= able; and under a power that he cannot resist.

Thus I have given you an account in these four particulars, of the matter that lies in the words And really, the text offers to you things of great moment, and weighty confideration. I will speak fhortly to all four and because I will be brief, I will put the two first together, and they will do well fo, viz.

I. That iniquity is the foundation of punishment, and II. That it is regular, ufual and ordinary for God to controul and punish finners. This is expected, and it becomes him, as he is the governor, and maintainer of righteousness, and truth. And if you speak properly of punishment, God doth only chastise finners, so, and no otherwise, finners, and none elfe. And then it is a great note, and will teach us to speak more accurately when we speak of punishment, for if we speak properly God doth not punish but in the cafe of fin. But because use and practice hath amplified this word and in a more large fenfe of the word, we fay a man is punished, when any evil thing befals him, though he hath done nothing that may procure it; I will therefore in a preparatory way offer four cafes, which we are not to call punishment.

1. The effects of God's abfolute fovereignty, and power. We acknowledge, that God in the ufe of his fovereignty, may deal differently with feveral of his creatures and yet, where he deals better, he doth not reward, and where he deals worfe, he doth not punish. And if this were well understood, thofe paffages in Rom. ix. would be better understood : fuch as thefe, Jacob have I loved, and Efau have I

bated:

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